How to delete multiple ChatGPT chats at once

Updated October 29, 2026 · 4-minute read

You can't select several ChatGPT chats and delete them together: OpenAI's own instructions only cover deleting one chat at a time or deleting every chat at once. If you want to clear out a batch but keep the rest, the practical routes are deleting one by one, archiving instead, or saving what matters and then using Delete all chats.

Disclosure: ConvoShelf is our product. Everything about ChatGPT here comes from OpenAI's Deleting and archiving chats in ChatGPT help article, which we read on October 29, 2026.

What ChatGPT actually lets you do

Action	How many chats	Can you undo it?
Delete from the chat's ••• menu	One	No
Archive from the chat's ••• menu	One	Yes, from Archived chats
Settings, Data controls, Delete all chats	All of them, including chats in projects	No
Settings, Data controls, Archive all chats	All of them	Yes, chat by chat

There's nothing in between. OpenAI updated the help article on October 28, 2026, and it still lists no way to pick several chats.

Delete a batch one at a time

Open your chat history. On the web it's the sidebar. In the iOS or Android app, tap the menu icon with two horizontal lines.
Open the chat's menu. Select the ••• button next to the chat. In the app, press and hold the chat's title instead.
Delete and confirm. Select Delete, then confirm. Repeat for each chat.

OpenAI says a deleted chat leaves your account view right away and is scheduled for permanent deletion within 30 days, unless it was already de-identified or OpenAI has to keep it longer for security or legal reasons. You can't restore it yourself or through support.

Archive instead if you only want a clean sidebar

Archiving is quicker because it needs no confirmation, and it isn't permanent. OpenAI says archived chats leave the regular sidebar, stay searchable, and keep the same retention as other saved chats. To bring one back, open Settings, then Data controls, then Archived chats, and select Unarchive. If most of your history is clutter, Archive all chats clears the sidebar in one step and lets you unarchive the few you still use.

One catch from OpenAI: archiving a chat that holds scheduled task results can pause that task on a later run.

Use Delete all chats only after saving what you need

Delete all chats sits under Settings, then Data controls. OpenAI warns that it can affect every chat in your current account or workspace, including chats in projects, and that it can't be undone. Before you press it:

Request your data export under Data controls. OpenAI's export article says it can take up to 7 days to arrive and the link expires 24 hours after you get it.
Remember that deleting chats doesn't delete files saved separately in Library, so remove those too if you want them gone.
Deleting a chat also doesn't delete a saved memory made from it. See does deleting a ChatGPT chat delete its memories.

Where ConvoShelf fits

ConvoShelf doesn't delete ChatGPT chats, and it can't add a multi-select delete to ChatGPT. What it does is make the "save what you need first" step quicker. We checked the code of version 1.0.2, the version on the Chrome Web Store, on October 29, 2026.

When you open a chat on chatgpt.com, claude.ai, gemini.google.com or grok.com, it saves that chat's text in your browser so you can find it later.
On the free plan, the Export tab saves the open chat as Markdown or PDF.
Pro, $4.99 once, adds checkboxes to select saved chats and move, tag or pin them together inside ConvoShelf, plus exports of a folder or of every saved chat as Markdown or JSON.
It has no account and no server, and it only saves chats you've opened, so it doesn't replace OpenAI's full export.

To sort what you keep, see how to organize your ChatGPT chats into folders and how to search ChatGPT and Claude chats in one place.

Add ConvoShelf to Chrome Free · no account

FAQ

Can you select multiple chats in ChatGPT and delete them?

Not as of October 29, 2026. OpenAI's help article on deleting chats describes deleting one chat at a time from its menu, or deleting every chat at once from Settings, Data controls. It lists no option to pick several chats.

Does Delete all chats include chats in projects?

Yes, it can. OpenAI says Archive all chats and Delete all chats can affect chats in your current account or workspace, including chats in projects. Delete all chats cannot be undone.

Can I get deleted ChatGPT chats back?

No. OpenAI says deleted chats, including chats removed with Delete all chats, cannot be restored in ChatGPT or through OpenAI Support. Export first if you might need them.

How long does OpenAI keep a deleted chat?

OpenAI says a deleted chat leaves your account view immediately and is scheduled for permanent deletion from its systems within 30 days, unless it was already de-identified or OpenAI must keep it longer for security or legal reasons.

Is archiving a safer way to clear the sidebar?

Usually. Archiving removes a chat from the sidebar without deleting it, needs no confirmation, keeps it searchable, and can be undone from Settings, Data controls, Archived chats. Archive all chats does the same in bulk.